The 1973 Saint Mary’s Huskies continue to leave a mark on this province, a quarter century after their shocking rise to the CIAU championship. The young SMU squad featured two juniors, two sophomores, and seven freshmen, but led by all-Canadians Mickey Fox and Lee Thomas, the Huskies defeated Lakehead University 79-67 in overtime at Waterloo, ON, to win the national title. Fox, a sophomore from New York City, scored 39 points in the final and six-foot-six freshman centre, Lee Thomas, from New Jersey, dominated the boards as Saint Mary’s claimed its first CIAU crown. Fox was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player for his efforts, but he credited Thomas, coach Brian Heaney, and teammate John Gallinaugh for the team’s success. “John Gallinaugh and Brian Heaney brought the team together, they were the glue”, Fox said. “Lee gave us heart and toughness. He was maybe six-foot-three and a half, but he just played big. All I had to do was catch and shoot. Not bad for a guy who couldn’t go left. “But Gallinaugh wouldn’t let us lose. I think he was 8-for-8 from the floor and 5-of-5 at the foul line and he hit the big shot in overtime.”

The Huskies defeated the highly touted Windsor Lancers 91-84 in the semifinal round to qualify for their title shot. Fox lit up the scoreboard again with 32 points to pace the Halifax school. Both Fox and Thomas were honoured as all-Canadians. Fox averaged 20.5 points per game for the season, while Thomas’s work ethic paid off on the backboards, where he averaged 14.5 rebounds per game. Coach Heaney molded his young team into a contender early, leading them to a 14-4 record in the Atlantic Universities Athletic Association (AUAA) before their national championship win. Fox recalls losing two of three games to the Acadia Axemen and needing to beat them in Wolfville in order to go to the national tournament. “Heaney had us convinced we were the best team”, Fox said. “We went into Acadia’s gym and beat them and everyone in the gym was shocked except Heaney.

“When we went to nationals, Heaney had us convinced we were the best team in the country. The crowd there was anti-Saint Mary’s, but we pulled it off. It was a lot of hard work and some good bounces.” His team’s shocking success earned Heaney the nod as CIAU Basketball Coach of the Year. Eight members of that Huskies’ team have stayed in Halifax and contributed to the development of basketball in this province as coaches, administrators, and officials.

The other members of the team were: Fred Perry, Peter Halpin, Brian Burgess, Art Waters, Otha Johnson, Greig Redding, Don Gallagher, and Bob Taboski. Team managers were John Landry, Terry O’Neill, and Peter MacAllister. The biggest thrill, Fox says, “was being the first Saint Mary’s team to win a national title. I still remember Father Hennessey being so proud of this little Catholic school from the Maritimes.” Halpin, who recently chaired Halifax’s successful bid to retain the CIAU Final Eight men’s basketball tournament, said winning a national championship has tied this group together for life. “Those of us who have remained in the city are very close friends, and those outside the city remain in pretty close contact,” Halpin said. “It’s one of those special things about being on a team. It creates a lifelong bond.”

Members of the team were: Brian Burgess, Mickey Fox, Donald (Taps) Gallagher, John Gallinaugh, Peter Halpin, Brian Heaney (coach), Otha Johnson, John Landry (manager), Peter McAllister (manager), Terry O’Neil, Fred Perry, Greig Redding, Bob Taboski, Lee Thomas, Art Waters.

Bio courtesy of by Craig Boyce